The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability, finding that there is no evidence of an in-service injury or disease and that his current condition does not meet the criteria for service connection.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence did not support a finding that the Veteran was involved in an in-service incident where he sustained a back injury, nor did it show any relationship between his current back disability and service.
- Claimed conditions
- thoracolumbar spine (back)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19192571
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 19192571.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for thoracolumbar spine (back), sleep apnea, and right knee condition as secondary to service-connected disabilities due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors and lack of discussion regarding the Veteran's assertions.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's thoracolumbar spine (back) disability and remanded the issues of service connection for cervical spine, right knee, left knee, right foot, and left foot disabilities.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals regarding the January 2006 rating decisions denying a neck disability, back disorder, and head trauma were dismissed due to the Veteran's death.
- Granted
The Veteran's claims for service connection for cervical spine, thoracolumbar spine, right knee, and left knee disabilities have been granted. The conditions are considered to be directly related to the Veteran's active military service.
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